Hi All,
For the past 8 years I have had a nearly constant feeling of very uncomfortable bloating in my abdomen. It is driving me crazy! What I eat has some effect on it, and so I tend to go hungry rather than add to the misery. I have regular bowel movements, no diarrhea, and very little gas.

I have had a gastroenterologist do a thorough physical and one of those barium scans. Everything looks normal. He says that I may have a "hypersensitive" gut, in which the nerves overreact to any stimuli.

Does anyone have any other ideas about what heck is wrong with me? Is this the same thing as IBS? What should/can I do?

I would suggest you keep a food/symptom log & keep trying to find a connection with certain types of foods. If you suspect that a certain food may be contributing, eliminate it from your diet for a week or so & see how you do, then re-introduce the food & see if there is an effect. This is your basic elimination & challenge dietary strategy.

Alternatively, you might consider having some testing done for food allergies. Bloating is very common with food intolerances & allergies. If just about everything you eat sets you off, it's possible that you are intolerant to more than one major offending group.